Replacing HAL Bangalore International Airport, the all-new Bengaluru International Airport started its operations on the night of May 23, 2008. Located at Devanahalli, almost 50 km from the central business district of Bengaluru, construction of the new airport was started in July 2005. It was ranked as the fourth fastest growing international airport, as per World Airport Traffic 2007 report, released by Airports Council International. Occupying an area of 4050 acres, Bengaluru International Airport was primarily designed to handle only 3.5 million passengers per year. However, it was later redesigned and its handling capacity increased to about 12 million passengers every year.

The expansion of the Bengaluru International Airport (BAIL) also resulted in an increase in the size of its terminal, number of aircraft stands, new taxiway layouts and supporting infrastructure. All the aircraft stands in BAIL have a fueling pit, a facility never seen before in Indian airports. The airport currently has one runway, which can accommodate all types of aircrafts, including the Airbus A380. The fourth-busiest airport in India, coming shortly after Mumbai, New Delhi and Chennai, Bangalore International Airport is going to have business centers, tax-free shops, entertainment centers, malls and office space very soon.

Passengers Facilities

* F & B
* Car Parking
* Duty Free Shops (in both arrival and departure sections)
* Lounge
* Hotel
* Large Upmarket Shopping Areas
* Multi-cuisine Restaurants
* Play Areas and Day Care Centers
* Baggage Reclaim Centers
* Air Rescue and Firefighting services
* Bus Facility

The domestic departure lounges at Bengaluru International Airport are provided by Air India, Jet Airways and Kingfisher Airlines, while the three international departure lounges are Kingfisher, Oberoi and The Leela.

Domestic Airlines

* GoAir (Ahmedabad, Cochin, Delhi, Mumbai)
* Indian Airlines (Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, Trivandrum
* Air India (Mumbai)
* IndiGo Airlines (Ahmedabad, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Patna, Pune)
* Jet Airways (Chennai, Cochin, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mangalore, Mumbai, Pune, Thiruvananthapuram)
* JetLite (Coimbatore, Delhi, Guwahati, Imphal, Jorhat, Kolkata)
* Kingfisher Airlines (Agatti, Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar, Calicut, Chennai, Cochin, Coimbatore, Delhi, Dibrugarh, Goa, Guwahati, Hubli, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Jorhat, Kolkata, Lucknow, Madurai, Mangalore, Mumbai, Nagpur, Pune, Rajahmundry, Tirupati, Trivandrum, Vadodara, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam)
* Kingfisher Red (Belgaum, Bhubaneshwar, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, Indore, Kochi, Madurai, Mumbai, Nagpur, Rajahmundry, Tirupati, Trivandrum, Vidyanagar, Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam)
* Paramount Airways (Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam)
* SpiceJet (Ahmedabad, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Pune, Srinagar)

International Airlines

* Air Arabia (Sharjah)
* Air France (Paris-Charles de Gaulle)
* Air India (Dubai, Male, Muscat, Singapore)
* Indian Airlines (Dubai, Male, Muscat, Singapore)
* Air Mauritius (Mauritius)
* British Airways (London-Heathrow)
* Dragonair (Hong Kong)
* Emirates Airline (Dubai)
* Lufthansa (Frankfurt)
* Malaysia Airlines (Kuala Lumpur)
* Saudi Arabian Airlines (Jeddah, Riyadh)
* Oman Air (Muscat)
* Singapore Airlines (Singapore)
* Sri Lankan Airlines (Colombo)
* Thai Airways International (Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi)
* Tiger Airways (Singapore)

Cargo Airlines

* Air France Cargo (Paris-Charles de Gaulle)
* Air India Cargo (Frankfurt)
* Blue Dart Aviation (Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi)
* British Airways World Cargo (London-Heathrow)
* Emirates Sky Cargo (Dubai)
* Etihad Crystal Cargo (Abu Dhabi)
* Gulf Air Cargo (Manama)
* Jet Airways (Delhi)
* Lufthansa Cargo (Frankfurt)
* MASkargo (Kuala Lumpur)
* Qatar Airways Cargo (Doha)
* Singapore Airlines Cargo (Singapore)
* SriLankan Cargo (Colombo)
* Thai Airways Cargo (Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi)

Flying on Singapore airlines is more than just a plane ride to another destination; it is an experience within itself. There is more than one reason why Singapore airlines is touted to be on the best and most comfortable airlines in the world. This is the magic that most of the passengers are talking about, over coffee in the airport cafe, having an early breakfast in any one of the restaurants, the languishing conversations as they drive back from the airport to their final destination.

The journey of an airline should never stop when the plane lands and the passengers are ushered out into the air conditioned environment of the airport – it should continue, the journey should live on in the conversations of the people who have experienced the excellent service, the comfortable seats and the overall Singapore airlines atmosphere that has made their journey a pleasant one. And this is what makes the airline such a great one. The level of comfort of the airlines is simply amazing, even if you are flying coach.

People who have flown a whole host of airlines can attest to this simple fact, the economy class seats of the airline is a cut above the rest, it is fully comfortable and it does not feel like you have been placed on the lowest echelon of flight seats available on the airplane. The much touted training of the stewards and stewardesses are also evident in their attentive style and courteous demeanours. This is why this airline has been getting rave reviews all over the world and more and more people are climbing aboard the signature blue and gold airlines to experience some of the magic. Everything about the airline is top class and this even include the food and refreshments that are served in flight. Airplane food has taken quite a turn when it comes to Singapore airlines – do not expect the same dry food and tasteless meat you might find on other flights, Singapore airlines understand that food is an important additive in the concoction of customer satisfaction. The drinks are also of high quality, especially the alcoholic beverages that include beer, wine and alcohol.

You feel like you are in a five star restaurant with their food, their service and their spacious seats. The in flight entertainment is also of a class on its own, with an extremely large amount of current and past movies, television shows, radio channels, games and interactive software. There is never a dull moment, in even the longest of flights and everything you need is there.

They even make special arrangements for those who are either disabled or health problems on board. In the end of the day, an airline is judged not only by the things that it can offer you, but by also the things you perceive. Not even the best food, the best wine and the best technology can make a great airline. It is the people of the Singapore airlines that make the magic – the very magic at dinner conversations the world over.